Old News
by Vengeful
Summary: A news story makes Casey reevaluate her relationship with Derek. Pure Dasey fluff, I assure you.


**A/N: So…I should really be working on To Have and to Hold. However, seeing as not much interest is shown in that story, I figured I could succumb to the desire to write fluff. Yes, I said it. Nice, innocuous, non-angsty, somewhat cliché, Dasey fluff. It is short, sweet, and oh, God, I cannot believe I wrote this.**

**So, there is not much else to say. Please, leave a review; they make my life a bit brighter. I hope you enjoy!**

**All grammar mistakes are mine; I am still looking for a Beta, if anyone would like the job. Please, contact me!**

**Emily**

**Disclaimer: It would most certainly not be a children's show were I in charge.**

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The story was all over the news, for it was impossible to ignore a story composed of such twisted and scandalous facts. A girl and her stepbrother had murdered their parents, scared that they would separate them upon finding out about their clandestine romance.

Of course, as is human nature, the people focused not on the heinous murders; the two were teenagers, and had they not been stepsiblings, the story would have hardly made a bleep on the radar. Rather, it was the somewhat incestuous relationship that had caused the ruckus over the story. People were shocked and aghast. A stepbrother and stepsister falling in love, and being in a relationship? How scandalous! Now, it even appeared that the girl was pregnant. What sort of creature would the offspring of this incestuous union be? Certainly, the child would be marked from birth, his heritage so sordid and inbred.

Casey MacDonald watched the story, and observed the fuss over it, with growing horror. It had evidently escaped the minds of the viewers that the teenagers had not been actually related by blood; it was simply marriage that bonded the two.

Oh, it wasn't so much the ignorance of everyone that disturbed her most. Casey had come to understand that people searched for scandal where none was to be found. Rather, it was their reaction to the relationship between the stepsiblings that left her rather disconcerted. It wasn't just the people on the news that voiced their thoughts, either. It seemed that even the kids at school had taken a vested interest in the case.

"Oh, my God! Can you imagine? They were, like, stepsiblings. And they, like, screwed each other. Oh, my God! It's like, I dunno, Derek doing his stepsister," said one girl to her friend as they passed Casey in the hall.

"Dude, he like, banged his sister. Dude! Seriously," said another boy.

Casey had to admit that she felt for the two kids, for she herself was in a similar position. Life could be a real bitch; sending a girl a man that she would fall in love with, but making him her stepbrother. Life really had a malicious sense of humor, when she thought about it. Oh, she couldn't condemn the actions of the two teenagers that had made the news. She could never imagine killing her mother and George, just so she could be with Derek. She loved him, all right, but there were much simpler solutions to avoiding the disapproval of their parents.

Running away to Mexico, for example, would be an ideal solution. Or maybe somewhere in the states. After all, she had heard that in certain places, incest was normal.

Casey tried to keep herself from paling each time the subject came up, but, having never been one for controlling her emotions, often failed.

"So, he like, was doing his stepsister, and…Casey, Case, you okay?" Emily said, noticing that her friends face had paled considerably.

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a bit tired. Too much studying last night…" Casey would respond, prompting Emily to move into a lecture on how Casey needed to stop the madness and enjoy her senior year.

Easy for her to say; she wasn't the one juggling a load of AP classes, the pressure of getting into a good university, and now, an apparently incestuous affair with her stepbrother.

Casey carefully studied Derek at school, looking for some indication that he was seriously disturbed by the talk that was going around. Derek, of course, looked nonplussed as usual. Casey wasn't sure if it was a good or bad thing that he seemed to be impervious to worry and gossip.

It was a few days after the news had broke that they finally had some time alone. The affair, so to speak, had started the summer following their junior year. It was the perfect cliché: parents gone, two teenagers left alone, sexual tension heavy in the air. Such a situation was inevitably bound to create a confrontation that would change everything.

Who could say when it was that touches turned to caresses, anger to passion, and words to whispers? When was it that the touch of his hand, the brush of her hip, created not resentment, but sparks? That weekend, a fight had escalated into the hands on combat of there youth. Now older, Casey and Derek had shied away from the physical fights, opting instead for the verbal battles. Perhaps, subconsciously, both had understood that the slightest touch could turn into something neither of them was prepared for.

That fear was quite right, for that hands on fight had been resolved within the confines of her room, their words of anger melding with shouts of pleasure. There, amongst sweaty limbs and soiled sheets, they had decided that maybe, just maybe, their differences and fights were not the result of intense dislike, as they had once thought. Certainly, this new thing was a much more pleasurable way of dealing with their issues.

Now, here they were, midway through their senior year, and still together. It had been an unspoken decision not to speak of their romance, for neither could find much practicality in that. They snuck into one another's room when the rest of the family was asleep. Sometimes they would kiss and caress and cause George and Nora to wonder if there was a rat problem, what with all that squeaking, and sometimes they would just cuddle, his arm wrapped around her.

It was during one of those cuddles that Casey had come to realize that she had done something very, very stupid: falling in love with him.

She now, however, had to put aside such thoughts and musings, for they had something very serious to discuss indeed.

So, that night, a few days after the story had broken, Derek snuck into her room.

"Casey, I haven't seen much of you these days. Surely, your studying cannot be that important," he said, walking up behind her and peppering kisses along her neck. Casey allowed herself to enjoy the attention, forgetting, for a moment, the reason that she was sitting at her desk.

"Derek," she half moaned, trying to push him away. "We have to talk…" She was stopped by his lips, which had captured hers as she tried to turn around. Reluctantly, he pulled away.

Derek was not a stupid man. Well, not when it came to women. School, now that was a different story…

Ah yes, women. Especially Casey, the bane of his existence. Damn, but he did love the girl, even with her neurotic tendencies and ever babbling mouth. But what that mouth could do when not speaking…

Sadly, right now, she needed to speak. He knew that the story on the news was bothering her. Two stepsiblings falling in love, and being condemned by everyone? He knew very well that their situation was quite similar to that of the two on the news, sans the murder of their parents, of course. It scared him, too. He never really thought that what they were doing was wrong. A bit unconventional, maybe, but certainly not wrong.

Now, it really didn't mean much to him if everyone thought that they were wrong. Casey and he could always move on, start over in a place where no one knew of their relation. They didn't have much time left here, anyways. Casey, however, was much more conscious of how people viewed her. Perhaps this stemmed from years of unpopularity in high school. Derek really didn't know, or, if he were to be honest, care.

Right now, what he feared was her breaking this insane relationship off, simply because of one story. She was clutching a piece of notebook paper, which was never a good sign. He pulled away from her, plopping himself down on her bed.

"All right, Casey. Let's hear it. What is on your mind? Philosophy, perhaps? Oh, or maybe one of those old books you're always reading. Did they finally drive you crazy?"

"Derek." She was clearly not amused by his pathetic attempts to lighten the mood.

"I'm sorry. But seriously, what's up?"

"I've been thinking about this," here, she motioned between them. "I mean, I'm sure you've heard the story on the news, and seen how people are talking about it." She was looking down periodically at the piece of paper in her hand.

Oh, God, Derek thought. A speech. This did not bode well for him.

"As you can see, the parallels between their case and ours are quite evident. And as you may also observe, public opinion is not really favorable in their case. This had made me think about what is going on between us. Obviously, this cannot be kept a secret forever, if it is to continue. So, we are left with two options. That is to say, we must…"

"Casey," Derek interrupted, "do you love me?"

She stood still for a moment, before reluctantly nodding her head. "Yes," she mumbled. She knew it was no use trying to lie; she was awful at it.

"And I love you. So, there is really nothing to talk about. We continue on, and wait until we are away at university to tell people. No one outside of our family needs to know how we are related, and I am sure Dad and Nora will forgive us in time. Marti won't really understand, and Edwin and Lizzie, well, who knows with those two?"

Casey's jaw had dropped after his first sentence. She stood staring at him in a dumb manner. "You love me?"

"Of course! Haven't you noticed that I haven't had a date since this started," he asked.

"You've just never said it."

He shrugged. "You know I'm not big on flowery confessions. If you wanted flowers and chocolates and a singer when I declared my love, you should never have gotten involved with me."

"So, what happens now? Do we just continue on as normal? Do we continue to act like we don't like each other?"

"It's only a few more months. And I have no problem telling people, if you want to."

She shook her head. "No, I would rather people not know quite yet."

"All right. So, for now, we wait. And you come over here, and give me the mandatory I Just Heard I Love You for the First Time sex." He smiled that damned cocky smile, and she found herself falling into his arms.

The news would fade away, she reasoned, as they kissed. Soon, it would be old news.

And when it was, well, perhaps they would make some news of their own.

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**A/N: Oh my. I can't believe I wrote fluff. Ah well. While you're here, you might as well review. Even if it is to tell my how God-awful I am. However, if you want something a lot better, I do suggest my other story (and yes, I am aware of my own shameless self promotion). Really. So, leave a review!**

**Emily**


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